Qualcomm is best known in consumer spaces for powering hundreds of millions of 3G and 4G smartphones. The company can take advantage of that expertise and apply it to the growing internet of things industry though, both through hardware and software.

Sensors might soon be embedded into everything from our socks to our hospital stretchers, which could be good for collecting data but will certainly change consumers’ interactions with technology. Getting it right might require a delicate balancing act between seamlessness and conspicuousness.

Millions use Facebook today but that’s not enough for the company which started a long-term initiative to connect 5 billion more people to the web last year. The challenges can be overcome and help us transition to a global knowledge-based economy.

Privacy in the age of the internet has been pretty poor. It could be much harder in the age of the internet of things — but experts from the White House, the ACLU and industry have some ideas about what to do.

Thingful founder Usman Haque told the Structure Connect 2014 audience that data generators need to have control of what they emit, and that will mean structuring internet of things systems accordingly.

We’re pleased to announce the following companies who have won a spot in this year’s Garage@Connect. Some will be launching at the show, while others will be showing off finished products. You should check them all out.

Chromecast owners can now personalize their TV’s home screen by adding their own photos and more thanks to a new feature called Backdrop. Are data feeds from smart home devices like Google’s Nest thermostat next?

Google is working on ways to combine smaller displays to giant screens in your living room. Good thing that with Chromecast, the company already has a product for ambient display devices out on the shelves.

Attention people with ideas for connected products: We want to send 30 of you to Gigaom’s Structure Connect event in October and give you space to show off your connected device in our Garage@Connect program.